Early Life and Education
Alfredo Harp Helú was born on March 11, 1944, in Mexico City. He is of Lebanese descent. He studied at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), where he graduated as a Public Accountant.
Rise to Success
Harp Helú's career began in the financial sector. He co-founded Acciones y Valores de México (Accival) in 1971, which became a leading brokerage firm. In 1991, Accival merged with Banamex, forming Grupo Financiero Banamex-Accival (Banacci). Harp Helú served as chairman of Banacci, the largest bank in Mexico and Latin America. In 2001, Citigroup acquired Banamex for $12 billion, and Harp Helú joined Citigroup's board.
Key Business Strategies
A key strategy was the merger of Accival and Banamex to create a financial powerhouse. Harp Helú's leadership at Banacci helped it become the largest bank in Latin America. After the sale of Banamex to Citigroup, he has focused on philanthropy and sports ventures.
Philanthropy
Harp Helú is known for his philanthropic work, mainly through the Fundación Alfredo Harp Helú and Fundación Alfredo Harp Helú Oaxaca. These foundations support education, health, culture, and conservation, with assets of $400 million USD as of 2015. His foundation donated over $20 million to 261 organizations in 2006.
In 1994, Harp Helú was kidnapped and held for 106 days, after which his family paid a ransom of approximately $30 million.